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Divh,. ,: 
Section  .. 
Nitini . ! 


PAPERS 


READ  BEFORE 


SThe  <9?eneral  ^sjsemtiljf  of  the  llresbsterCan  ^fiurch, 


RESIGNING  HIS  OFFICE 


PROFESSOR  OF  THEOIiOGlT 


WESTERN  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY. 


SINCE  APPENDED. 

BY  J.  J.  JANEWAY. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

PRINTED  BY  CLARK   8c  RASEH,  33  CARTEr's  ALLEY. 
July— 1829. 


\" 


ADVERTISEMENT, 


Unfounded  reports  of  an  injurious  character,  circulated  in 
regard  to  the  author's  conduct,  east  and  west  of  the  moun- 
tains, have  induced  him  to  publish  these  papers  for  the  use 
of  his  friends.  Many  heard  them  read  before  the  General 
Assembly,  and  many  others  did  not.  He  thinks,  and  so  he 
has  been  told,  that  a  perusal  of  them  will  be  a  gratification  to 
his  friends. 

It  is  a  satisfaction  to  the  writer  to  know  that  not  a  single 
y«c^  stated  in  his  papers  was  disputed.  Had  any  been  denied, 
he  was  prepared,  as  he  observes  in  the  close  of  his  communi- 
cation, to  furnish  additional  evidence.     It  was  unnecessary. 

In  consequence  of  somethfng  in  the  report  of  the  Board  of 
Directors,  he  was  induced  to  read  the  two  first  papers. 

He  has  no  wish  to  see  these  papers  in  the  public  prints. 
But  the  publication  of  them  in  this  form  he  deems  due  to  his 
own  character. 


4m 

Sfc. 


Copy  of  a  Letter  from  John  M.  Snowden^  Esq. 


The  following  paper  was  read  in  the  General  Assembly,  by  Dr.  Janeway, 
May  28th,  1829.  E.  S.  Ely,  Stated  Clerk. 

Pittsburgh,  May  7th,  1829. 
Dear  Sir, — The  enclosed  resolutions  were  passed  by  the 
Board  of  Directors*  at  their  sessions  this  day,  and  Mr.  Sa- 
muel Thompson  and  myself  were  appointed  a  committee  to 
present  them  to  you.     Having  learned  on   inquiry  at  your 
late  residence,  that  you  had  removed  to  the  country,  I  have 
taken  the  liberty  of  presenting  them  to  you  in  this  form,  and 
of  requesting  of  you  to  signify  your  determination  by  letter 
to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Swift,  Secretary  of  the  Board. 
I  am,  very  respectfully, 
Yours,  &c. 

John  M.  Snowden. 

P.  S.  It  may  not  be  amiss  to  state,  that  a  modification  of 
the  report  of  the  Board  will  be  made,  should  your  answer 
require  such  modification. 


Whereas  some  difficulties  are  likely  to  arise  in  consequence 
of  the  ignorance  on  the  part  of  this  Board  of  the  reasons  (if 
special  reasons  are  to  be  assigned)  for  the  resignation  of  the 

*  Ono  was  a  vote  of  thanks  for  books,  &c 


Professor,  and  this  Board,  while  they  declare  it  not  their  in- 
tention to  take  it  upon  them  to  decide  the  question  to  whom 
Dr.  J.  should  render  his  resignation  and  reasons;  yet  being  of 
the  opinion  that  this  Board  does  constitute  the  body  to  whom 
such  documents  should  be  offered,  and  through  them  to  the 
General  Assembly  : 

Therefore,  Resolved,  That  Messrs.  Snowden  and  Thomp- 
son be  a  committee  to  wait  upon  Ur.  Janeway,  and  respect- 
fully inquire  whether  it  be  consistent  with  his  views  to  lay 
this  matter  before  the  Board;  and  if  not,  to  inquire  whether 
he  intends  to  assign  any  special  reasons  for  his  resignation; 
and  if  so,  whether  they  are  such  as  will  be  calculated  to  af- 
fect the  character  and  proceedings  of  the  Board,  or  the  inte- 
rests of  the  Seminary. 

A  true  copy  of  the  Minute. 

E.  P.  Swift, 
May  6th,  1829.  Secretary. 


Copy  of  a  Letter  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Swift,  in  reply. 

The  following  paper  was  read  in  the  General  Assembly,  by  Dr.  Janeway, 
May  28th,  1829.  E.  S.  Ely,  Stated  Clerk. 

Latshato'Sf  Pittstownship,  May  8, 1829. 

Dear  Sir, — The  resolution  of  the  Board  I  have  received.  In 
reply,  I  send  the  following  remarks. 

A  professor,  in  resigning  his  office,  may  use  the  Board  of 
Directors  as  the  organ  of  communication  to  the  Assembly  or 
not,  and  either  assign  reasons,  or  not,  as  he  may  choose.  But 
when  the  case  is  special,  and  there  exists  a  difference  between 
his  views  and  theirs,  it  is  proper  that  the  communication 
should  be  made  directly  to  the  Assembly ;  and  in  my  case  it 
is  the  more  proper,  as  I  wish  to  give  information  which  the 
Board  would  be  unwilling  to  impart.  The  plan  of  the  Semi- 
nary requires,  that  a  professor,  intending  to  resign  his  office, 
should  give  six  months'  previous  notice  to  the  Board  of  Di- 


rectors  of  such  intention.  This  I  have  done;  but  the  Board 
seem  to  have  overlooked  the  fact  that  I  cannot  at  present 
resia;n. 

You  know,  that  as  soon  as  I  had  discovered  the  invalidity 
of  the  title  to  the  Seminary  ground,  I  communicated  the  fact 
to  you  and  three  other  directors;  that  I  freely  conversed  with 
you  on  the  subject,  and  with  other  directors;  and  that,  at  a 
nrieeting  of  the  Executive  Committee,  called  at  my  request, 
for  the  express  purpose.  I  gave  at  large  my  views  on  this 
subject.  You  know  that  I  was  willing  to  present  my  views 
to  the  Board;  and  you  know  that  they  had  no  desire  to  re- 
ceive them.* 

When,  in  consequence  of  Dr.  Herron's  sickness,  I  inform- 
ed your  Vice  President  of  my  intention  to  resign,  I  stated 
that,  in  due  time,  I  would  assign  my  reasons ;  and  that,  for 
the  present,  it  would  suffice  to  mention  one — the  invalidity 
of  the  title.  A  similar  statement  was  afterwards  made  to  your 
President.  I  informed  Dr.  Herron,  at  the  meeting  of  the 
Board  in  April  last,  when  he  was  talking  with  me,  in  private, 
about  my  reasons,  that  I  was  willing  to  communicate  verbally 
with  the  Board.  I  have  mentioned  to  you  and  Dr.  Herron, 
and  other  directors,  my  reasons,  or  the  chief  of  them,  at  sun- 
dry times.  I  have  told  them  freely  to  other  persons.  In- 
deed, on  reviewing  them,  I  do  not  see  one  reason  which  I 
have  not,  in  one  form  or  other,  spoken  of  to  more  than  one 
director.  And  yet,  after  all  this  free  communication,  and  al- 
though two  of  my  reasons  have  been  the  subject  of  conversa- 
tion with  many  in  Pittsburgh,  the  Board  speak  of  their  '^^  ig- 
norance of  the  reasons  for  the  resignation  of  the  Professor!" 

But  Mr.  Snowden  has  informed  me,  that  a  modification  in 
the  report  of  the  Board  will  be  made,  if  my  answer  should  re- 
quire such  modification;  and  has  requested  me  to  write  to 
you.     I  am  wholly  ignorant  of  the  nature  of  your  report. 

*  At  a  meting  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  in  April  last,  Dr.  Andrew  Wyli« 
observed,  that  they  had  heard  the  superintendent  give  his  views,  and  he  would 
be  pleased  to  hear  my  statement.  I  arose  and  said  I  was  ready  to  give  my  views 
to  the  Board  at  any  time.    I  was  not  invited  to  present  them. 


8 

Mr.  S.  could  give  me  no  information  about  it.  As  the  Board 
have  been  unwilling  to  acknowledge  any  defect  in  the  title, 
I  may  presume  the  Executive  Committee  have  no  power  to 
insert  such  an  acknowledgment  in  their  report  in  conse- 
quence of  my  answer.  But  that  the  Board  may  no  longer 
say  they  are  ignorant  of  my  reasons,  I  will  now  state  the 
heads  of  them  in  writing. 

1.  The  invalidity  of  the  title,  connected  with  its  conse- 
quences. 

2.  Regard  to  the  dignity  and  purity  of  the  Presbyterian 
church,  and  a  regard  to  my  own  character. 

3.  The  high  price  of  living  in  Allegheny  town. 

4.  The  change  in  the  prospects  of  the  Seminary. 

These  are  the  reasons  why  I  deem  it  my  duty  to  resign  my 
office  as  Professor,  and  think  I  am  not  required  to  continue 
to  make  the  sacrifices  I  have  voluntarily  made,  and  others 
which  I  contemplated. 

My  reasons  are  based  on  facts  with  which  the  Board  are, 
or  ought  to  be,  familiar.  Will  you  pardon  me,  if  I  remind 
you,  that  the  plan  of  the  Seminary  expressly  requires,  that 
you  should  lay  before  the  Assembly  the  minutes  of  the  Board, 
or  a  copy  of  them,  for  the  free  inspection  of  every  member; 
and  that,  in  my  opinion,  as  the  Executive  Committee  have 
been  invested  with  all  the  powers  of  the  Board  for  particular 
purposes,  their  minutes  should  be  sent  also:  a  full  account, 
too,  of  your  expenditures,  and  an  accurate  account  of  your 
funds,  are  required  by  the  Assembly. 

We  differ  in  opinion  about  the  validity  of  Mr.  Denny's  sig- 
nature to  the  deed  of  conveyance.  Kprobateqf  the  ^^;^7/of  the 
late  James  O'Harra  will  settle  the  difference.  Dr.  Herron  can 
get  one  with  perfect  ease,  and  free  of  expense,  from  the  fa- 
mily. I  hope  he  will  not  fail  to  take  it  with  him  to  Philadel- 
phia. I  had  hoped  that  this  matter  would  not  assume  a  per- 
sonal complexion.  I  have  endeavoured  to  prevent  it.  But 
I  am  disappointed.  The  Board  have  put  me  on  my  defence; 
and  I  will  defend  myself.  Yet  I  will  still  endeavour  to  avoid 
personalities,  and  confine  myself  to  an  exhibition  oi facts. 


9 

Fairness,  I  think,  to  me,  will  make  it  the  duty  of  the  Ex- 
ecutive Committee  to  send  up  this  letter,  in  connexion  with 
your  minutes,  to  the  Assembly,  as  well  as  to  present  it  to 
your  Board  at  their  next  meeting. 

Affectionately  yours, 

J.  J.  Janeway. 

P.  S.  It  occurs  to  mention,  that  if  any  other  good  reason 
shall  in  any  way  be  presented  to  my  mind,  between  this  and 
the  time  of  my  actual  resignation,  for  confirming  me  in  my 
determination,  it  will  be  fair  to  state  it. 


Statement   of  the   Jiuthor^s   Reasons  for   resigning   his 
Office  as  Professor  of  Theology. 

The  following  document  was  read  by  Dr.  Janeway  in  the  General  Assem- 
bly, May  28th,  1829.  E.  S.  Ely,  Stated  Clerk. 

In  resigning  an  office  so  recently  accepted,  I  feel  that  I 
owe  to  the  General  Assembly  a  statement  of  my  reasons. 

It  will  be  readily  believed,  that  my  mind  could  not  be 
brought  to  its  present  determination  without  experiencing 
some  painful  reflections.  Nor  did  I  dare  to  come  to  a  deci- 
sion on  a  point  of  so  great  importance,  until  1  had  frequently, 
seriously,  solemnly  and  prayerfully  contemplated  the  subject, 
connected  with  all  the  consequences  that  I  could  bring  into 
view. 

When  I  removed  my  family  from  Philadelphia,  it  was  my 
intention,  if  my  life  were  spared,  to  spend  some  years  in 
discharging  my  duties  as  a  Professor  in  the  Western  Theo- 
logical Seminary.  A  corresponding  disposition  of  my  pro- 
perty in  this  city  was  made.  But  occurrences  wholly  unex- 
pected have  altered  my  views,  and  led  me  to  believe  it  to 
be  my  duty  to  resign  my  office. 

The  Assembly  will  allow  me  to  state  my  reasons  fully 
^nA  frankly.  In  doing  so  I  exercise  my  right;  and  no  one 
whose  views  may  differ  from  mine,  can  justly  be  offended  : 
for  while  I  have  a  regard  to  my  own  justification,  I  wish  to 

B 


10 

Jay  before  this  body  Information  which  they  ought  to  pos- 
sess. 

1.  The  prominent  reason  of  my  resignation,  is  the  in- 
validity of  the  t/issembly's  title  to  the  Seminary  ground. 
The  consequences  connected  with  this  reason  will  appear 
under  subsequent  particulars. 

When  I  left  this  city  I  believed  (as  the  General  Assembly 
who  fixed  the  location  of  the  Seminary  at  Allegheny 
town  did)  the  title  to  be  perfectly  good.  All  parties  in- 
terested in  the  ground  had,  it  was  stated  by  individuals  ac- 
quainted with  facts,  conveyed  their  rights  to  the  General 
Assembly.  In  this  belief  I  remained,  after  the  removal  of 
my  family  to  Pittsburgh,  more  than  three  months  before  I 
had  any  suspicion  to  the  contrary.  I  had  heard,  it  is  true, 
of  an  individual  having  warned  the  superintendent  to  desist 
from  his  work ;  but  as  he  was  represented  as  an  out-lot- 
holder ,  who  had  no  right  to  interfere,  I  paid  no  regard  to 
this  circumstance.*  But  when  the  superintendent  informed 
me,  in  a  private  conversation,  that  only  one-fifth  of  the  com- 
moners had  signed  the  deed  of  conveyance;  that  he  was 
sometimes  discouraged  and  thought  of  applying  to  them  for  a 
better  title;  and  that  the  deed  he  had  prepared  for  procuring 
other  signatures  had  not  been  used;  I  became  alarmed,  and 
instantly  determined  to  investigate  the  real  state  of  the  title. 
Such  information,  so  contrary  to  my  belief,  could  not  but 
surprise  me  greatly.  I  procured  the  necessary  documents; 
and  it  required  but  a  single  reading  of  them  to  convince  me 
that  the  Assembly's  title  was  essentially  defective.  To 
guard  against  mistake  I  stated  the  case  in  a  letter  to  an  emi- 

*  The  above  statement  was  written  in  consequence  of  a  report  circulated  in 
Pittsburgh,  that  I  knew  the  title  to  be  defective,  when  I  accepted  my  appoint- 
ment, and  that  I  had  been  informed  of  the  fact  when  I  visited  Pittsburgh  in 
the  autumn  of  1827.  Now,  Providence  has  so  ordered  it,  that  I  am  not  left 
to  defend  myself  by  a  simple  contradiction ;  for  my  letter  to  the  Board,  after 
my  return  to  Philadelphia,  in  which  1  assign  my  reasons  for  declining  the  ap- 
pointment of  the  General  Assembly,  contains  not  a  word  about  the  title;  and 
there  doubtless  I  should  have  assigned  as  one  reason  the  defect  of  the  title,  if 
I  had  known  the  fact.  Who  originated  this  unfounded  report  is  unknown 
to  me. 


11 

nent  leo;al  character  in  this  city;  who,  after  examining  the 
several  acts  of  the  Legislature  and  a  decision  of  the  Supreme 
Court  on  an  analogous  case,  to  which  I  had  referred  him, 
kindly  gave  his  opinion,  that  not  only  confirmed  my  opinion, 
but  enlarged  my  views  of  the  rights  of  the  commoners. 

The  history  of  the  matter  is  this:  The  town  of  Allegheny 
is  built  upon  what  has  been  denominated  "  the  reserved 
tract,"  containing  3000  acres,  lying  along  the  Allegheny  and 
Ohio  rivers.  In  conformity  with  acts  of  the  Legislature, 
passed,  in  1783,  17S7,  this  tract  was  laid  out  in  lots  and  out- 
lots.  Around  the  town,  and  adjoining  the  out-lots,  a  com- 
mon was  laid  out,  consisting  of  100  acres,  for  the  benefit  of 
purchasers.  The  use  of  this  common  belongs  to  the  lot-hold- 
ers; but  the  right  of  reversion  is  vested  in  the  common- 
wealth. 

In  the  year  1825,  certain  lot-holders  signed  a  deed,  by 
which  they  conveyed  their  right  and  title  to  a  defined  portion 
of  the  common,  containing  18  acres,  to  trustees,  for  the  use 
and  benefit  of  the  General  Assembly ;  provided  the  Western 
Theological  Seminary  should  be  established  in  Allegheny 
town,  and  'he  Seminary  erected  on  the  said  ground. 

In  1827,  the  Legislature  transferred  to  the  same  trustees  for 

the  General  Assembly,  the  Commonwealth's  right  and  title  to 

the  same,  or  nearly  the  same,  defined  portion  of  the  common. 

Now,  it  is  perfectly  plain,  that  the  lot-holders  who  signed 

the  deed  could  not  convey  the  rights  of  lot-holders  who  had 

not  signed:  and  it  is  equally  plain,  that  the  Legislature,  by 

conveying  the  reversionary  right  of  the  Commonwealth  to  the 

Assembly,  did  not,  and  could  not,  by  their  act,  convey  a  right 

which  the  Commonwealth  did  not  possess;  that  is,  a  right  to 

build  on  the  common. 

So  defective  was  the  title  of  the  General  Assembly. 

But  what  sets  this  matter  in  the  clearest  light,  is  the  fact, 

that,  in  the  year  1824,  only  three  years  before  the  grant  to 

the  General  Assembly,  by  a  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court, 

made  in  the  city  of  Pittsbnrgk,  the  trustees  of  the  Western 

University,  in  a  suit  in  which  they  were  plaintififs,  were  eject- 


12 

ed  from  40  acres  of  the  same  common,  of  which  they  had 
taken  possession  by  the  authority  of  the  State. 

It  has  been  said,  that  the  trustees  had  no  conveyance  from 
any  of  the  lot-holders,  but  that  the  Assembly  had  ;  and  that 
this  fact  makes  a  great  difference  in  the  two  cases.  The  fact 
is  admitted,  but  the  inference  denied.  It  is  worthy  of  re- 
mark, that  the  deed  of  conveyance  of  the  lot-holders  forms 
the  preamble  to  the  act,  by  which  the  Le2;islature  have  con- 
veyed to  the  Assembly  the  right  of  the  Commonwealth,  and 
consequently,  the  act  of  the  Legislature  is  accompanied  with 
an  explicit  recognition  of  the  right  of  the  commoners  to  the 
common  :  and  that,  in  the  case  of  the  Western  University, 
without  recognising  the  right  of  commoners,  the  Legislature, 
as  if  the  Commonwealth  possessed  an  absolute  right  to  the 
common,  granted  to  the  trustees  of  the  Western  University 
40  acres  of  the  common  in  fee  simple,  and  ordained  that  a  pa- 
tent should  be  granted  to  them  free  of  expense. 

In  such  strong  circumstances,  the  case  of  the  University 
came  into  court.  The  trustees  appeared  with  their  patent 
from  the  State  in  hand.  Yet,  appreciating,  as  the  court  did, 
"  the  noble  design  of  the  Legislature  in  erecting  a  university 
in  the  western  part  of  the  state,"  the  late  venerable  Chief  Jus- 
tice Tilghman  says :  "  I  have  not  been  able  to  entertain  a 
doubt  that  the  defendants'  right  of  common  is  unextinguish- 
ed and  UNEXTiNGUisHABLE,  but  with  their  own  consent." 

This  decision  was  matter  of  public  notoriety  in  Pittsburgh ; 
well  known,  as  well  as  the  preceding  facts,  to  some  of  the  Di- 
rectors of  your  Western  Seminary;  for  three  of  them  were 
trustees  of  the  University,  and  one  a  defendant  in  the  suit.  It 
is  to  be  regretted  that  these  facts  had  not  been  stated  to  the 
General  Assembly;  and  that  the  Directors  determined  to  oc- 
cupy the  ground,  when  but  a  small  number  of  lot-holders 
had  signed  the  deed  of  conveyance.  I  hazard  nothing  when 
I  say,  that  no  educated  lawyer  could,  after  investigating  the  sub- 
ject, fail  to  be  convinced  of  the  invalidity  of  the  Assembly's 
title;  and  that  no  sound  and  discreet  one  would  have  advised 
the  occupancy  of  the  ground  in  such  circumstances.  He  would 


13 

have  told  them  that  the  title  could  not  be  perfected,  unless  a// 
the  commoners  united  in  the  deed  of  conveyance;  that  build- 
ings erected  on  the  ground  would  lie  at  the  mercy  of  evtry 
lot-holder  whose  signature  was  not  given;  and  that,  if  in  pre- 
sent circumstances,  the  ground  should  be  occupied,  and  the 
Assembly's  title  should  come  to  trial,  the  Directors  would  be 
considered  as  having  contravened  the  commoners'  known 
rights,  and  acted  in  direct  opposition  to  a  decision  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  in  an  analogous  case,  so  recently  made  in  the  city 
of  Pittsburgh,  by  which  the  law  on  the  subject  of  common 
was  clearly  laid  down. — See  Sergeant  and  Rawle's  Reports, 
vol.  xii.  pp.  29,  34. — Pamphlet  Laws,  vol.  ii.  pp.  498-9,  for 
1826-7. 

The  deed  of  conveyance  to  the  Assembly  has  but  thirty-one 
signatures;  and  from  this  number  must  be  deducted  ihe  name 
of  one  gentleman,  who  has  signed  in  behalf  of  a  large  estate. 
I  have  inspected  the  will ;  and  it  is  perfectly  clear  to  my  mind, 
and  every  lawyer  will  say  so,  that  his  signature  is  of  no  avail, 
and  cannot  bind  the  estate. 

The  superintendent,  who  was  educated  as  a  lawyer,  well 
knew  the  defect  of  the  title;  for,  in  the  winter  preceding  the'* 
iiieeting  of  the  Directors  in  1828,  when  they  determined  to  oc- 
cupy the  ground,  and  to  commence  their  work,  he  had  prepared 
a  bill,  and  sent  it  to  the  Legislature  to  be  passed  into  a  ij»w; 
the  object  of  which  was,  to  compel  dissatisfied  commoners  to 
sue  for  damages,  and  not  for  ejectment.  Any  one  acquainted 
with  the  rights  of  citizens  to  their  property,  and  the  constitu- 
tional powers  of  the  Legislature,  will,  I  think,  pronounce  that 
such  a  law  would  have  been  unconstitutional,  and  conse- 
quently, that  the  bill  was  justly  rejected. 

In  confirmation  of  the  views  stated  above,  I  present  the 
opinions  of  professional  characters.  An  eminent  lawyer  of 
this  city,  whose  opinion  I  requested,  says,  in  a  letter:  *'  It 
does  not  appear  to  me,  that  it  is  necessary  that  a  proprietor 
should  give  notice  of  his  claim,  inasmuch  as  the  right  of  com- 
mon, in  the  p)ojMiefuis  of  the  lots,  is  a  part  of  the  title  it- 
self; or  rather,  the  title  of  the  trustees  is  plainly  subject  to  that 


14 

right.  It  is  not  a  case  oi  dormant  or  dubious  claim,  in  rela- 
tion to  which  the  trustees  may  be  considered  as  being  without 
notice ;  but  is  a  case  of  clear,  certain,  and  well-known  right, 
to  which  the  trustees'  title  is  confessedly  subject;  and  in  di- 
rect opposition  to  which  they  must  be  considered  as  acting,  if 
they  proceed  to  erect  their  buildings." 

"  The  right  being  appurtenant  to  each  lot,  the  acts  of  one 
proprietor  cannot  affect  other  proprietors;  and,  therefore,  if 
the  individual  alluded  to  were  to  release  his  right,  it  would 
not  affect  the  rights  of  other  proprietors." 

"  I  may  add,  that  I  see  no  sort  of  safety  in  erecting  build- 
ings, until  the  whole  right  of  common  is  extinguished;  I  mean 
so  far  as  relates  to  the  land  within  the  boundaries  of  the  grant 
to  the  Seminary,  by  the  act  of  Assembly." 

Thus  stood  the  title,  when,  after  giving  due  notice  of  the 
facts  to  several  members  of  the  Executive  Committee,  I  felt 
it  to  be  my  duty  to  determine  on  resigning  my  office  as  soon 
as  the  plan  of  the  Seminary  would  allow. 

Subsequently  to  my  determination  being  known,  additional 
signatures  have  been  procured.  How  far  an  advance  toward 
perfecting  the  title  has  been  made  the  Assembly  must  de- 
cide; and  I  may  add,  that,  if  this  should  ever  be  accomplish- 
ed, it   will  be  owing  to  my  determination  to  resign.*     It 

*  Certainly  no  obstruction  was  thrown  in  the  way  of  perfecting  the  title  by 
my  determination.  It  served  to  rouse  the  directors  to  action.  "  I  have  placed 
you,"  was  my  language  to  one,  "  in  the  most  favourable  situation  for  securing 
a  good  title,  if  it  can  be  obtained.  Now  is  the  time  for  gaining  releases  from 
lot-holders.  '  Our  professor,'  you  may  say  to  them,  'has  determined  to  re- 
sign on  the  ground  of  the  invalidity  of  the  title.  If  you  wish  to  have  the 
Seminary  on  the  hill,  you  must  give  us  a  better  title.' "  And  I  added, 
"  there  ought  to  be  a  fair  understanding  with  the  commoners  in  regard  to  the 
use  to  which  you  intend  to  apply  a  part  of  the  ground ;  because,  unless  you 
can  have  the  right  of  applying  it  so  as  to  raise  from  it  a  fund,  it  will  not  be 
worth  accepting;  for  in  that  case,  the  grading  of  the  hill  will  make  it  a  dear 
'purchase." 

"  You  have  done  us  good,"  said  a  director  to  me,  a  day  or  two  after  I  had 
read  my  statement  to  the  Assembly.  "  We  admit  all  your  facts.  We  were 
asleep,  and  you  have  roused  us.  We  are  willing  to  have  a  restriction  laid  on 
us,  not  to  proceed  in  erecting  the  buildings  till  the  title  is  perfected  •' 


15 

is  however  my  duty  to  ask,  whether  sufficient  pains  have 
been  taken  to  ascertain  whether  all  who  have  signed  had  a 
right  to  sign;  and  whether,  if  wills  were  examined,  it  would 
not  be  found  that  some  signatures  were  of  no  avail.  Have 
females  no  right  of  dower  in  the  common?  Are  no  females 
owners  of  lots  ?  Have  females  signed  the  deed  of  convey- 
ance? 

In  regard  to  the  estate  of  James  O'Harra,  it  is  proper  to 
observe,  tliat  the  trustees  may  so  convey  the  property  to  one 
of  his  children,  that  she  and  her  husband  may  release  her 
right  of  common;  but  as  the  property  of  the  other  two  must 
remain  in  trust,  their  right  of  common  cannot  be  conveyed 
to  the  Assembly.*  For  minors  no  one  can  sign.  Beside  I 
know  of  two  lots  for  which  an  inhabitant  has  for  years  paid 
the  taxes,  the  owner  of  which  is  unknown. 

The  riffht  o(  out-lot  holders  to  common  is  unsettled.  As 
a  determination  of  this  question  was  unnecessary  in  de- 
ciding the  case  of  the  University,  the  court  left  it  undeter- 
mined. The  right  however  of  proprietors  of  out-lots  origi- 
nally bought  in  connexion  with  town-lots,  but  afterwards 
separated  by  sale,  cannot  be  disputed;  because  one  and  the 
same  patent  was  given  for  these  lots  thus  sold  by  the  State  in 
connexion.  As  this  class  of  out-lots,  or  many  of  them,  lies 
at  the  extreme  part  of  the  reserved  tract,  and  has  the  right  of 
common,  does  it  not  seem  probable,  that  the  right  was  origi- 
nally attached  to  the  intervening  out-lots,  which  are  in  situa- 
tion nearer  to  the  Common?  An  eminent  legal  gentleman  in 
Pittsburgh  told  me  in  conversation,  that  he  knew  that  the 
out-lots  had  the  privilege  of  common.  The  Secretary  of  the 
Land  Office  informed  mc,  as  I  passed  through  Harrisburgh 
in  my  return  to  this  city,  that  a  legal  gentleman  of  Washing- 
ton, now  deceased,  had  a  few  years  ago  examined  the  question, 

*  To  his  daughter  Mary,  whose  child  survives  her,  Mr.  O'Harra  bequeathed, 
beside  other  property,  several  out-lots  and  toion-lots  ;  and  to  his  son,  two  out- 
lots.  Mary  died  before  any  conveyance  was  made  to  her;  and  the  son's  whole 
portion  was  put  in  trust  during  his  natural  life.  Who  can  tell  what  will  be 
the  disposition  of  the  heirs  when  they  come  into  possession  of  this  property  ^ 


Id 

and  was  fully  persuaded  that  the  out-lot-holders  had  a  right 
to  the  common. 

Were  the  Assembly  to  submit  this  question  to  the  judg- 
ment of  professional  gentlemen,  they  would  learn,  that,  if 
but  a  single  lot-holder,  who  had  not  released  his  right,  were 
to  bring  the  question  into  court,  judgment  must  be  given 
against  the  Assembly;  and. that  the  Legislature  itself  could 
not,  by  the  exercise  of  any  constitutional  power,  aflford  pro- 
tection. 

A  legal  gentleman  in  this  city  wrote  to  me,  under  date 
March  10,  thus:  "Before  receiving  your  letter,  which  is 
now  on  m)'^  table,  and  indeed  before  your  decision  was 
known  here,  I  had  examined,  for  my  own  satisfaction,  the 
question  of  the  Assembly's  title  to  the  ground  in  Allegheny, 
and  had  arrived  at  the  conclusion,  that  the  Seminary  would 
be  at  the  mercy  of  every  lot-holder  in  the  town.  I  was 
aware,  indeed,  that  releasps  had  been  executed  to  a  cer- 
tain extent,  but  I  felt  assured  that  in  this  case,  as  in  every 
other  that  I  have  known  of  a  similar  character,  some  one,  or 
some  half  a  score  would  be  found  at  last  to  have  retained  an 
interest;  and  that,  in  the  end,  the  title  would  be  quieted  only 
by  a  long  series  of  compromises.  I  fully  agree  with  you,  that 
it  would  ill  become  the  General  Assembly  to  occupy  land 
under  an  imperfect,  or  even  a  doubtful,  and,  therefore,  liti- 
gated title." 

Under  date  of  March  18,  an  intelligent  and  respectable 
member  of  the  Legislature  says,  in  a  letter  from  Harrisburgh : 
"I  have  already  informed  you,  that  not  having  turned  my  at- 
tention particularly  to  the  law,  it  would  be  presumption  in  me 
to  give  an  opinion  on  principles  that  are  not  well  understood 
even  among  lawyers.  1  have,  however,  mentioned  the  mat- 
ter to  several  gentlemen  of  good  legal  acquirements,  who  seem 
to  be  unanimous  in  saying,  that  the  commoners  could  not  re- 
lease, except  they  would  all  join  in  the  deed." 

In  the  close  of  this  particular,  it  is  my  duty  to  add,  that  it 
were  easy  to  prove,  before  a  court  of  justice,  or  a  bench  of 
lawyers,  that  the  title  is  not  now  valid,  and  that  it  cannot,  by 


17 

any  exertions,  be  perfected  for  years  to  come ;  and  to  re- 
mark, that  no  period  of  possession  can  aflFord  security  to  the 
Assembly,  while  the  title  remains  defective.  For  many  years, 
the  city  of  Pittsburgh  had  been  in  possession  of  a  strip  of 
land  lying  along  the  Monongahela,  from  Grant  street  to  the 
point  at  the  junction  of  the  two  rivers.  They  believed  their 
title  to  be  good,  and  had  for  years  derived  a  considerable  re- 
venue from  this  ground.  But  other  claimants  appeared,  and 
submitted  their  claim  to  the  judgment  of  the  Circuit  Court  of 
the  United  States.  The  cause  was  very  recently  heard  and 
tried  in  this  city;  and  judgment  has  been  given  in  favour  of 
the  new  claimants.  A  serious  loss  to  the  city  of  Pittsburgh  ; 
and  a  heavier  one  to  owners  of  property  on  Water  street;  for, 
eventually,  it  may  destroy  the  beautiful  prospect  now  enjoy- 
ed by  the  houses  along  the  Monongahela. 

2.  My  second  reason  is,  regard  to  the  dignity  and  pu- 
rity of  our  churchy  as  well  as  regard  to  my  own  character. 

Circumstanced  as  the  title  was  last  May,  it  is  plain  the 
ground  ought  not  to  have  been  occupied;  and  had  the  facts 
been  known  to  the  last  Assembly,  they  would,  it  is  presumed, 
have  deemed  the  occupancy  inconsistent  with  the  dignity  and 
the  purity  of  the  Presbyterian  church.  To  me  it  appeared 
proper  to  be  known,  that  the  supreme  judicature  of  our  church 
were  ignorant  of  any  defect  in  the  title ;  and  consequently, 
not  liable  to  reflections  some  might  wish  to  cast  on  them, 
for  occupying  ground  to  which  they  had  no  legal  title. 

Nor  have  I  been  unmindful  of  what  was  due  to  my  owa 
character.  As  a  Professor  of  Theology  in  the  institution,  I 
am  not,  it  is  true,  responsible  for  the  doings  of  the  Directors, 
or  of  the  Executive  Committee.  Intelligent  men,  however, 
sometimes  fail  to  make  the  necessary  distinction;  and,  had  I 
continued  my  connexion  with  the  Seminary,  without  giving 
some  public  declaration  of  the  defect  in  the  title,  I  should 
have  merited  a  share  in  any  censures  due  to  the  holding  of 
ground  without  a  legal  title,  I  am  unwilling  to  participate  in 
such  censures ;  and  the  easiest  way  to  avoid  them  is  to  resign 

c 


18 

my  office,  though,  in  so  doing,  I  may  incur  other  censures, 
which  1  am  conscious  I  do  not  deserve. 

It  has  been  said,  that  had  I  been  silent,  the  title  would  not 
have  been  disturbed.  The  assertion  is  altogether  unfound- 
ed; for,  before  I  had  any  knowledge  of  its  defect,  a  lot-holder 
had,  at  two  different  times,  warned  the  superintendent  to  de- 
sist, and  had  taken  legal  advice  in  regard  to  his  rights.  Had 
he  chosen  to  do  so,  he  might  have  ejected  the  Assembly.  His 
opposition  has  been  removed  only  by  complying  with  his  de- 
mands, and  larger  ones  than  he  at  first  made.  It',  however, 
nothing  of  the  kind  had  happened,  and  I  had  become  fully  sa- 
tisfied in  my  own  mind  of  the  invalidity  of  the  title,  and  the 
consequent  danger  of  erecting  buildings  on  the  ground,  surely 
the  duty  I  owe  the  church  would  not  have  allowed  me  to  be 
silent.  Had  I  acted  such  a  ///n/fl?  part,  and  the  buildings  been 
erected  and  afterwards  lost,  I  should  have  reproached  myself, 
and  others  would  have  reproached  me,  for  concealing  a  fact  I 
was  bound  to  make  known. 

It  was  my  duty  to  speak.  I  did  so;  and  even  before  my 
views  had  been  confirmed  by  the  opinion  of  an  eminent  legal 
character  in  this  city,  I  expressed  to  three  members  of  the 
Executive  Committee  and  another  director,  my  decided  con- 
viction of  the  invalidity  of  the  title,  and  that  no  lawyer  of  re- 
putation in  Pittsburgh  would,  in  writing,  give  a  favourable 
opinion.  Subsequently  I  urged  the  propriety  of  perfecting 
the  title,  if  it  could  be  done,  and  expressed  a  wish  that  the 
Board  of  Directors  might  be  convened.  But  finding  my 
brethren  did  not  feel  the  apprehensions  I  felt;  that  they 
were  disposed  to  prosecute  the  erection  of  buildings  on  the 
hill;  and  that  a  meeting  of  the  Board  was  not  likely  to  be 
called  ;  it  appeared  duty  to  determine  on  resigning  my  office. 
As  the  plan  required  six  months'  previous  notice,  I  embraced 
the  earlier  opportunity  of  signifying  my  intention  to  the  pro- 
per officer  of  the  Board. 

The  Executive  Committee,  however,  were  afterwards  con- 
vinced of  the  illegality  of  the  title;  and  felt  the  necessity  of 
looking  out  for  other  ground.     Yet,  if  I  am  not  mistaken, 


19 

nothing  can  be  found,  either  on  their  minutes,  or  on  those  of 
the  Board,  the  meeting;  of  which  was  not  called  till  the  10th 
of  March,  that  will  indicate  the  fact.  And  here  my  brethren 
and  I  have  differed  in  our  views.  They  wished  to  conceal 
the  defect  of  the  title;  but  I  thought  the  honour  and  purity 
of  the  church  required  a  frank  and  open  acknowledgment  of 
the  truth. 

3.  The  HIGH  PRICE  OF  LIVING  at  Allegheny  town  fur- 
nishes another  important  reason  for  my  resignation. 

During  my  visit  to  Pittsburgh  in  the  autumn  of  1827,  I 
was  led  to  believe  that  the  students  could  be  supported  at  a 
very  low  rate.  This  was,  in  my  view,  a  strong  recommen- 
dation of  the  place  selected  as  the  location  of  the  Seminary. 
It  would  be  vain  to  look  for  many  students  of  the  west,  to 
resort  for  education  to  a  place  where  a  large  expenditure  of 
money  would  be  needed.  In  the  winter  of  1828,  a  consider- 
able rise  in  the  price  of  provisions  took  place;  but  as  this  was 
attributed  to  temporary  causes,  it  was  believed  that  the  price 
would  soon  fall  again.  But  after  the  settlement  of  my  fami- 
ly in  Pittsburgh,  I  felt  greatly  disappointed  at  the  expense  of 
living,  and  the  continuance  of  the  high  price  of  provisions; 
and  early  expressed  to  a  brother  my  apprehf  nsions  of  the 
injurious  effect  it  would  have  on  the  growth  of  the  Seminary, 
and  fears  that  it  was  unfortunately  located.  As  far  as  I  have 
been  able,  by  inquiries  and  observation,  to  obtain  informa- 
tion, it  appears  to  me  probable  there  will  be  no  very  mate- 
rial diminution  in  the  expense  of  living. 

The  discouragement,  iiowever,  arising  from  this  circum- 
stance, was  abated  by  the  prospect  of  a  large  fund  to  be  raised 
from  leasing  building  lots  connected  with  the  Seminary 
ground;  a  part  of  which  might  be  applied  toward  reducing 
the  students'  expense  in  living.  But  this  expectation  is  gone. 
No  prudent  man  would  build  on  them;  and  if  any  should  be 
willing  to  run  the  risk,  they  would  give  but  little  for  them. 
Besides,  I  have  sufficient  evidence  to  convince  me  that  the 
inhabitants  of  Allegheny  town  would  oppose  such  a  use  of 


20 

the  ground,  as  not  comporting  with  their  intention  in  their 
releases. 

If  no  fund  can  be  derived  from  such  a  use  of  the  ground, 
of  what  value  will  it  be  to  the  Assembly?  The  grading  of 
the  middle  section  of  the  hill  has  already  cost  ^2500,  and 
would  have  cost  much  more,  if  the  superintendent  had  not 
relinquished  his  salary  of  §1000.  The  completion  will  re- 
quire y^oOO,  which,  it  is  supposed,  will  be  repaid  by  the  sale 
of  stone  dugout  oMt.  Two-thirds  remain  to  be  graded  ;  and 
it  is  easy  to  calculate. wiiat  the  whole  will  cost.  Tlius  the 
ground,  instead  of  being  a  valuable  donation,  is  likely  to 
become,  in  the  end,  a  dear' purchase. 

It  has  not  been  ascertained  whether  water  can  be  obtained 
by  sinking  a  well  on  the  top  of  the  hill. 

4.  The  great  change  in  the  prospects  of  the  Seminary y 
is  atiolher  important  reason. 

To  the  Assembly  of  1827,  the  ground  was  stated  to  be 
worth  1^18,000;  and  a  subscription  amounting  to  ^36,000, 
obtained  by  hasty  efforts  within  the  bounds  of  the  Synod  of 
Pittsburgh,  was  reported  for  the  Western  Seminary;  pro- 
vided it  should  be  located  in  Allegheny  town.  In  the  print- 
ed report  to  the  last  Assembly,  it  is  stated,  that  "the  amount 
originally  subscribed  in  Pittsburgh  and  Allegheny  town  ex- 
ceeds ^12,000,  and  may  be  very  considerably  increased;  and 
that  at  the  foot  of  the  hill  there  is  "  an  entire  range  of  build- 
ing lots  eligibly  situated:"  and  from  these  lots,  it  was  un- 
derstood, might  be  derived,  in  a  few  years,  an  income  suffi- 
cient .to  support  one,  if  not  two  professors.  A  professor  of 
ecclesiastical  history  and  church  government  was  chosen  last 
May;  and  a  young  man  of  promise,  it  was  known,  would  be 
appointed  by  the  directors,  as  teacher  of  oriental  and  biblical 
literature.  The  Seminary,  it  appeared,  might  go  into  speedy 
and  full  operation.  Living  too,  it  was  believed,  would  be 
cheap  and  inviting  to  students  of  slender  means  for  support. 

In  circumstances  so  flattering,  I  accepted  my  appointment 
as  Professor  of  Theology.  I  cherished  the  hope,  that  any  un- 
friendly feelings  excited  in  the  breasts  of  some  by  its  location, 


21 

would  speedily  die  away;  and  that  it  would  become,  what  the 
Assembly  intended  it  to  be,  The  Western  Theological  Semi- 
nary of  the  Presbyterian  Chuj^ch. 

To  show  how  materially  these  prospects  are  changed,  it  is 
hardly  necessary  to  add  to  what  has  been  said  about  the  title 
to  the  ground,  and  its  consequences^  that,  after  repeated  in- 
quiries in  regard  to  the  subscription  papers  oCi^36,000, 1  could 
learn  nothing  more,  than  that  they  were  scattered  among  the 
congregations,  and  some  lost;  and  that  there  is  no  encourage- 
ment to  hope  that  the  Western  Synods  will  patronise  the  Se- 
minary in  its  present  location.* 

I  am  of  opinion,  that  the  institution  will  not  answer  the  As- 
sembly's design;  and  that  although  it  may  retain  the  name  of 
the  Western  Theological  Seminary,  it  will  be  merely  Syno- 
dical  in  its  operations. 

A  frank  and  full  exhibition  has  been  given  of  the  reasons 
that  brought  me  to  a  determination  to  resign  my  office,  and 
have  kept  my  mind  in  that  determination.  I  have  often  re- 
viewed them,  and  frequently  prayed  I  might  not  mistake  the 
path  of  duty.  I  have  seen  no  reason  to  change  my  intention. 
I  still  think,  that  in  these  circumstances.  Providence  does  not 
require  me  to  persevere  in  sacrifices  voluntarily  made,  and  to 
make  others  that   I  contemplated;  to  deprive  my  family  of 


*  Reported  as  subscribed, $36,000 

Subscribed  afterwards,  in  Philadelphia,  nearly  $6,000,  say  6,800 
Mr.  Hughes'  agency  was  reported  as  being  successful,  and 

therefore  may  be  set  down  as  yielding,  additional,       -  8,000 


Total, $49,800 

But  the  Board  reported  only  $30,000.  Here  I  must  speak  from  recollection. 
The  report  of  the  Directors  has  not  come  into  the  hands  of  the  Stated  Clerk. 

As  an  inducement  to  accept  my  appointment,  one  Director  told  me  I  would 
immediately  have  15  students  ;  and  another,  that  I  would  have  20;  and  urged 
this  as  a  consideration  for  entering  on  ray  office  just  after  my  appointment. 

When  I  arrived  in  Pittsburgh  I  found /owr  students,  who  had  been  studying 
there  during  the  year  past.  When  I  began  to  instruct  them,/oMr  more  were 
added ;  but  one  of  the  former  retired.  So  that  we  had  four  in  one  class,  and 
tliTtc  in  the  other  ;  all  from  Presbyteries  belonging  to  the  Synod  of  Pittsburgh: 
the  fruit  of  one  year  and  nine  months. 


22 

comforts  and  conveniences  to  which  they  have  been  accustom- 
ed; and  to  subject  my  children  to  disadvantages  and  tempta- 
tions that  may  be  avoided.* 

Respectfully,  therefore,  I  tender  to  this  General  Assembly 
my  resignation  of  the  office  of  Professor  of  Theology  in  the 
Western  Seminary.       , 

For  this  long  communication  I  must  beg  pardon ;  and  yet 
solicii^  indulgence,  while,  in  the  close,  I  remark,  that,  being 
conscious  of  having  endeavoured  to  ascertain  and  do  the  di- 
vine will,  I  /eel  no  regret  at  having  accepted  my  appoint- 
ment. It  is  not  for  us  to  determine  duty  with  a  prophetic 
eye.  Ours  is  a  humbler  task;  to  learn  present  duty  from  pre- 
sent circumstances.  Israel,  by  following  the  guidance  of  the 
heavenly  cloud,  made  their  journeys,  and  not  unfrequently 
retrograde  ones.  They  returned  and  pitched  their  tents  in 
places  they  had  formerly  left.  We  need  not  complain  ;  for 
He  who  knows  Xhe  future  as  perfectly  as  the  past,  has  said  : 
"In  all  thy  ways  acknowledge  him,  and  he  shall  direct  thy 
paths." 

For  all  the  facts  stated  in  this  communication  I  hold  myself 
responsible,  and  stand  ready  to  produce  further  evidence,  if 
needed.  The  opinions  expressed  will  go  for  what  the  Assem- 
bly may  think  them  worth.  I  will,  however,  observe,  that 
they  have  been  carefully  and  prayerfully  formed ;  and  add, 

*  The  reader  is  now  prepared  to  decide  on  the  sufficiency  of  ray  reasons, 
and  to  appreciate  the  truth  of  a  report  circulated  in  Pittsburgh  and  on  this  side 
of  the  mountains,  that  the  true,  reasons  of  my  resignation  were  of  a  domestic 
nature.  In  leaving  a  large  and  important  congregation,  to  whom  I  was  attach- 
ed, and  of  whose  cordial  and  united  attachment  I  had  no  reason  to  doubt ;  in 
exchanging  a  liberal  support  for  a  very  precarious  one  ;  in  removing  my  family 
from  the  circle  of  their  friends  and  relatives  to  that  of  strangers,  and  from 
Philadelphia  to  Pittsburgh ;  no  one  will  doubt  there  was  a  sacrifice  made  to 
duty.  Had  it  not  been  felt,  it  would  have  been  no  sacrifice.  It  was  felt;  and 
if  the  pressure  of  it  on  my  family  had  been  so  severe  as  to  require  my  resigna- 
tion, I  should  have  frankly  acknowledged  it,  and  felt  myself  justified  in  assign- 
\na  this  reason.  But  this  was  not  the  cause  of  my  determination.  In  the 
statement  presented  to  the  Assembly,  I  have  fairly  and  honestly  exhibited,  in 
their  proper  connexion,  the  reasons  that  induced  that  determination,  and  kept 
mv  mind  from  swerving  from  it 


28 

that  I  could  not  withhold  what  is  contained  in  this  communi- 
cation consistently  with  what  I  deem  duty. 

Very  respectfully, 

.J.  J.  Janewat. 
Philadelphia,  May  26,  1829. 

The  Rev.  Moderator  of  the  General  Assembly. 


Minutes  of  the  Assembly  on  the  Case. 

The  Directors  of  the  Western  Theological  Seminary,  made 
their  annual  report,  which  was  accepted,  and  committed  to 
Dr.  Martin,  Mr   John  Johnston,  and  Mr.  Denny. 

Rev.  Andrew  Wylie,  D.D.  resigned  his  office  as  a  Director 
in  the  Western  Theolog;ical  Seminary. 

Nominations  were  made,  to  fill  the  vacancies  in  the  Board 
of  Directors  of  the  Western  Theological  Seminar}'^. 

The  Rev.  Jacob  J.  Janeway,  D.D.  resigned  his  office  of 
Professor  of  Theology  in  the  Western  Theological  Seminary, 
and  gave  at  length,  in  writing,  his  reasons  for  so  doing. 

The  resignation  of  Dr.  Janeway  was  accepted ;  and  his 
v»rritten  reasons,  with  accompanying  papers,  were  committed 
to  the  same  committee  to  which  was  referred  the  report  of 
the  Directors. 

Mr.  Boyd,  Mr.  Beman,  Mr.  Cushman,  and  Mr.  Strong, 
were  added  to  this  committee. 

The  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  report  of  the 
Directors  of  the  Western  Theological  Seminary,  together 
with  the  reasons  assigned  by  Dr.  Janeway  for  his  resignation 
of  the  office  of  Professor  of  Theology  in  that  Institution, 
made  the  following  report,  which  was  adopted,  viz: — 

The  Directors  of  the  Western  Seminary  having  reported  to 
the  General  Assembly,  that  they  have  had  under  their  care, 
during  the  past  year,  eight  students  in  the  said  Seminary; 
that  there  remained,  at  the  close  of  the  last  session,  seven 
students;  that  preparation  has  been  made  for  the  commence- 


24 

ment  of  the  erection  of  suitable  buildings  for  the  said  Semi- 
nary, on  a  site  selected  for  that  purpose  in  the  town  of  Alle- 
gheny, but  that  the  title  to  the  laml  is  not  yet  perfected ; 
your  committee,  recommend  the  adoption  of  the  following 
resolutions,  viz: — 

1.  Resolved,  That  the  sum  of  ^3000  be  appropriated  and 
paid  to  the  Directors  of  the  Western  Seminary,  for  the  sup- 
port of  teachers  for  the  present  year. 

2.  Resolved,  That  the  sum  of  ^8000  be  appropriated  for 
the  erection  of  the  necessary  buildings  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  Western  Seminary;  and  that  the  same  be  paid,  so 
soon  as  the  Directors  of  the  said  Seminary  have  satisfactory 
evidence  that  all  objections  to  the  title  of  the  land,  on  which 
the  said  buildings  are  to  be  erected,  shall  have  been  re- 
moved. 


1 


a^. 


